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The road to annexation is proving arduous and bumpy as developers of Showfield at Lewes continue moving toward a destination. And for those wondering if they’re there yet, the answer is definitely no.
A Tuesday, April 2, public hearing at the Lewes Public Library was the continuation of Showfield at Lewes’ subdivision and zoning application. The hearing was heavily attended.
Lewes Mayor Jim Ford said the hearing was required as a follow-up to a March 6 public hearing, which had not been preceded with required legal notifications.
He said the record for written public comment had remained open since the March hearing, and would close at 4 p.m., Friday, May 9.
Douglas Marshall, attorney for Showfield at Lewes, and Matthew Peterson and Doug Warner of Element, project designers and engineers, provided a summary overview of the project.
Developers Showfield LLC, Sophora J LLC and Hazell M. Smith plan to build 607 housing units on 230 acres adjacent to Gills Neck Road and Freeman Highway.
About 90 acres of the site are within Lewes City limits. Developers are requesting that the city annex about 140 acres, now in unincorporated Sussex County.
Warner, Element’s chief engineer, said plans for the community have undergone numerous changes in the nearly two-year period since it was initially proposed.
The community would feature nearly 92 acres of open space, which includes Whites Pond, the development’s outstanding natural feature.
Too close for comfort
Jeff Broderick, president of Bay Breeze Estates Home Owners’ Association, said many of the community’s residents don’t like Showfield’s plan to construct six multifamily buildings adjacent to the development.
“We do not want to be the great city of Troy. Move the units next to Breakwater – those people have not moved in yet,” Broderick suggested.
Breakwater, a 185-housing-unit community, is under construction. Broderick suggested Showfield developers spread the multifamily buildings throughout the community, rather than constructing them along the property line.
Broderick said Bay Breeze homeowners have heard accusations that they’re “not being Lewes friendly” because of their objections to plans that could provide vehicular access between Showfield and the community.
“There is one narrow lane in and one narrow lane out, and there are no sidewalks in Bay Breeze,” he said. Broderick said drivers already have a tough time getting a break in traffic when pulling from Bay Breeze Drive onto Kings Highway and Freeman Highway.
“The community can’t handle more vehicular traffic,” Broderick said.
Affordable Showfield
Peterson said Showfield at Lewes developers are committed to designate 3 percent, or 18 homes, as moderate-income housing.
Lewes resident Carolyn Quinn said affordable housing, as defined by the federal government, is housing that does not require more than 30 percent of individual or family income.
She said according to Yahoo Real Estate data, the median income for a Lewes resident is $57,518. At that income, a home priced at $214,000 would be affordable.
For those earning 80 percent of Lewes’ median income, $46,014, an affordable home would be priced at $170,671.
Quinn said based on salaries, a Lewes Police Department officer could afford a home priced at $144,000, a Lewes streets department employee could afford a home priced at $137,000 and a Cape Henlopen School District support services employee could afford a $91,000 home.
She said Cape Henlopen School District administrators and teachers and Beebe Medical Center registered nurses do have incomes that make more expensive homes affordable. School administrator salaries would make a $390,000 home affordable, and a home priced around $224,000 would be affordable for nurses and teachers.
“Our dream, therefore, would be that 15 percent of the units of Showfield at Lewes be committed to affordable housing – 10 percent would be wonderful,” Quinn said.
She said Sussex County Council in 2006 introduced a Moderately Priced Housing Unit [MPHU] program requiring participating developers to include 15 percent of a community’s units.
Showfield developers say it’s too soon to accurately determine home pricing.
Water, traffic and open space
City resident Dave Ennis has voiced concerns about protecting Lewes’ so-called excellent water recharge areas and drinking water wellhead protection at numerous city and Lewes Board of Public Works meetings.
Ennis reiterated at the hearing that 13 residential developments are proposed, or are already under construction, near the Showfield site.
He said a substantial portion of the Showfield property is within Lewes’ excellent recharge area. Ennis, who formerly served in the state House, said a 2001 Delaware law requires the protection of wellheads and recharge areas.
“You need some scientific advice on how to do that,” he said. Ennis said Lewes’ excellent water recharge area designation could be lost if heavy construction equipment compacts soil at the Showfield site.
“I’m deeply concerned that you know what you’re acquiring,” he said, requesting that the city delay decisions on Showfield until the area’s underground water science is better understood.
Ennis was one of several members of Managing Growth Around Lewes who attended the hearing.
The grassroots citizens’ group is concerned about effects of development on quality of life in the greater Lewes area.
John Mateyko, a founding member and chairman of the group, said Showfield has raised concerns that are “beyond the level of what citizens should do.”
He said Showfield’s developers, the city, and state agencies know least about the aspect with the greatest potential for adverse impact.
“It’s the traffic. No one has anything on this,” Mateyko said.
Group member and Lewes resident Gail Van Gilder said the proposed design’s buffer around Whites Pond is too narrow and its parks too small to be functional.
“The park at Whites Pond is only a buffer and the buffer is too narrow. It’s 30 feet and it should be 200 feet,” Van Gilder said. She said the community’s design isn’t a reflection of the area surrounding it.
“The town of Lewes will be defined by what is approved,” Van Gilder said.
Ford said he and the city council would review public hearing comments, continue discussions with the developer and city’s engineering consultant, and consider possible modifications to the project. He said the 90-day clock starts on Friday, May 9, for the Lewes Planning Commission to determine whether to recommend preliminary approval of the project. An annexation decision is pending.
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